Thursday, January 19, 2012

I have not written much about SOPA/PIPA, mostly because there were so many people being so much more eloquent about the dangers of the legislation than I would be.* I could not think of anything to say that would not simply be a pale imitation of others' words.

A friend of mine on Facebook pointed out, though, that every one of us who illegally downloads a song, who can't wait for that episode of their favorite show to come out on DVD, who gets movies off of Pirate Bay, contributes to the very real problem that these bills allege to correct. My hands are not clean, but more and more these days I am trying to be careful about where I get material.*** (I was relieved when iTunes started carrying Criminal Minds, because that meant that there was a way to see the episodes without waiting for reruns. I had not been watching the episodes I missed because there was no way to do so legally.)

I know artists, photographers and writers. They are able to make a living doing what they do because they can control what happens with their work. The same is true of those who make television, movies and music. They need and deserve to have their work protected. All of us can help with that.

I am not naive enough to think that if all of us stopped swiping things the efforts to pass bills like SOPA/PIPA will go away; I'm cynical enough to think that these are as much about power and control as they are about protecting artists. But we can stop being the users who prop up the drug cartel.

*That's never stopped me before, I know.**And you have to read this. I won't describe it, just... read. I nearly snorted my Salted Carmel Mocha through my nose.*** I actually bought Weird Al's "Don't Download This Song" for 99 cents from iTunes, which my children found incredibly funny.

"Sometimes you gotta create what you want to be a part of." Dr. Geri Weitzman

"An idea is not responsible for the people who believe it." Don Marquis

"The infinite possibilities each day holds should stagger the mind. The sheer number of experiences I could have is uncountable, breathtaking, and I'm sitting here refreshing my inbox." xkcd (webcomic by Randall Monroe)

"A man's reach should exceed his grasp, or what's a heaven for?" Robert Browning.

"The opposite of war isn't peace, it's creation." Jonathan Larson.

"If I can't dance, I don't want to be part of your revolution." Emma Goldman.

“No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.” Samuel Beckett.

"I believe that the God who made (among other things) light, and space, and number, and time, and the spiral curve of Fibonacci numbers, must be acknowledged to understand more than I do about why there’s pain in the world." Teresa Neilsen Hayden

“No, it’s not fair. You’re in the wrong universe for fair.” John Scalzi.

"So keep fightin' for freedom and justice, beloveds, but don't you forget to have fun doin' it. Lord, let your laughter ring forth. Be outrageous, ridicule the fraidy-cats, rejoice in all the oddities that freedom can produce. And when you get through kickin' ass and celebratin' the sheer joy of a good fight, be sure to tell those who come after how much fun it was." Molly Ivins